Preparing to Operate Off of the HMS Queen Elizabeth: Working with the Marines at VFMAT-501

06/15/2015
2015-06-10 By Robbin Laird and Murielle Delaporte During a visit to the 31st Marine Air Group, we visited VFMAT-501, the Warlords and met with the CO of the Squadron “OD” Bachman, Major Brian Bann and Squadron Leader Hugh Nichols from the Royal Air Force. In separate pieces, we are publishing…

BALTOPS 2015: Working Coalition Force Insertion

06/15/2015
06/15/2015: by Sgt. Tatum Vayavananda BALTIC SEA – Marines from four NATO nations come together during BALTOPS from June 7-17. U.K. Royal Marine Commandos, Finnish Coastal Jaegers, Swedish and U.S. Marines integrate to practice expeditionary, ship-to-shore assaults to enhance their capability to work together as a combined amphibious force. “The U.K. [Commandos]…

Arctic Challenge 2015: Fighter Jets at EFRO

06/13/2015
2015-06-13 RVNspotting has an interesting video showing some NATO jets taking off from EFRO. Rovaniemi Airport (Finnish: Rovaniemen lentoasema) (IATA: RVN, ICAO: EFRO) is the fifth biggest airport in Finland by annual number of passengers (in 2012), located in Rovaniemi, Finland, about 10 kilometres (6 mi) north of Rovaniemi city centre. The…

Aboard the USS Wasp: Participants in Operational Testing Provide a Progress Report

06/09/2015
2015-06-09 By Robbin Laird On May 26, 2015, when journalists visited the USS Wasp to engage with the ship’s crew and personnel involved in operational testing, a panel was held at the end of the visit with several Marine Corps and Navy participants in OT-1. The material presented provided a…

Military Innovation: The Leadership Dimension

06/09/2015
2015-06-08 By Dr. Les Nunn In his article entitled “Re-Norming the Asymmetric Advantage in Air Dominance: ‘Going to War With the Air Force You Have,’” former Secretary of the Air Force, the Honorable Michael W. Wynne, concluded his paper with “This march towards the future must begin in our imagination…